Review: Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

Title: Starcrossed

Author: Josephine Angelini

Publisher:  HarperTeen

Publication Date: 5.31.2011

Pages: 496

Genre: Mythological Romance

Series: Yes, Book #1 (Starcrossed)

Rating: A+

Summary (from Goodreads):

How do you defy destiny?

Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it's getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she's haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood . . . and when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, she has no way of knowing they're destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on repeating throughout history.

As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.

Review:

Let me start off by saying I have been staring at this computer screen for nearly 10 minutes trying to formulate a review. But sometimes there just aren’t the words to convey that deep, gut-moving love you have for a book, and that is how I feel about Starcrossed.  Some writers will fumble through decades (or at least several years) before writing a book this good, and the fact that Josephine Angelini did it in her first publication is to commended and awed.

I spent five glorious hours completely enraptured with this book, and if the sequel were available, I would gladly give up another five hours of my life to climb back into the world Angelini has created. Not only does she put a creative spin on the Trojan War (something that will forever endear her to me because I have spent countless days immersing myself in the histories of Helen, Paris, Hector, Achilles, Briseis, and King Priam), but she blended it artfully with Greek mythology (another passion of mine).

The characters are well developed and have an amazing dynamic when thrown together. Some of my favorite scenes were those in Noel’s kitchen when the whole family milled about. Angelini masterfully juggled having multiple characters in the same scene, giving each of them an independent and different voice that carried the chapter. Watching Helen blossom from a gawky, awkward girl into a young woman beginning to own her powers was an absolute joy to watch.

If I had to pick my least favorite part? Probably that sneaky little curve ball that was thrown at Helen and Lucas, but I have my suspicions that that particular issue will be resolved by the end of the series (it better be, anyway). I’m a girl who loves her fairytale ending sooner rather than later, but I can be patient … for now.

Starcrossed is a smashing debut that will have readers and bloggers in the YA community buzzing for a while, probably until the sequel comes out. It really is that good. I cannot recommend this book enough, and if I wasn’t intending on rereading my copy in the near future (i.e. this week), I would be thrusting it into the hands of my family and friends to read.

Maybe I should just get another copy to loan out.